The Hallowed
'' "We purified our forest home of wickedness, now we will cleanse the rest of this wretched planet!" - Pierre Ancel, Grande Perfecti.'' The Hallowed is the name given to the governing and religious leaders of the secret city state of Leala. After having spent over 531 years in isolation. Their order had erradicated all hostile supernatural forces within the forest that conceals their city and finnally became exposed to the outside world in the year 1740. Though their church has roots in Catharism, the years spent in the once haunted woodlands has twisted it into an even more extreme version of the Catholic Church. Agenda and Vendettas : The Hallowed have a vague but single-minded goal. To destroy all evil on the planet earth. They are particularly opposed to the Eldritch cult for their various acts of blasphemy in the name of power and wealth. They also show ill will towards Monochrome for interferring in their crusade whenever it affects something outside the supernatural world. Organization : Because the Cathari faith they descend from had very little structure, there are few orders within the Hallowed. The Hallowed are divisioned into two caste. The Credentes and the Perfecti. :: Credentes ::: The Credentes are the lesser caste in the Hallowed. Any member who is still learning the church's teachings is considered a Credente. Credentes are denied certain privilages reserved for Perfecti; such as the right to marriage, the right to property, ect. Credentes also act as gaurds, foot soldiers, and perform other forms of meanial labor within the church. ::::: Deacons :::::: The only rank a Credente is allowed to earn is Deacon. Deacons are appointed by the Filius Major and Filius Minor, who they act as servants for. Deacons are lesser religous leaders who may give orders to lesser Credentes, but the scope of their power is limited. A Deacon can not give millitary orders, though they are granted some control over the gaurds. :: Perfecti :::: The Perfecti are the spiritual elite. Everything the church can offer is within their grasp and they need only reach for it to obtain it. Once a Credente has memorized the Hallowed Text by heart, he or she is inducted into the Perfecti. ::::: Bishop :::::: The Bishop is the second in command of the church. Any and all secondary Millitary decisions fall on the Bishop's shoulder's unless overridden by the Grande Perfecti. The Bishop has two assistants; the Filius Major and Filius Minor. The Filius Major is the individual who will replace the Bishop upon his retirement or death, the Filius Minor will thus become the new Filius Major and appoint a new Filius Minor amoung the other Perfecti. The Filius Major and Minor hold no millitary power not granted to them by the current Bishop. ::::: Grande Perfecti :::::: The leader of all members of the Hallowed. The Grande Perfecti is chosen by the Sword of Perfecti, an enchanted sword possessed by the souls of past Perfecti in the order. The sword selects its weilder among the Perfecti and the role of leadership to him or her. The Current Grande Perfecti is Pierre Ancel. The Hallowed Text : The Hallowed Text is a heavily altered version of the New Testament of the Holy Bible. It is not entirley certain how the text evolved over time. But anthropologists, sociologists, and theologists working under Monochrome have theorized that in order to better educate children who were unfamiliar with concepts outside the forest wich were mentioned in the bible, the Cathar ancsestors of the Hallowed would certain elements of the story with more recognizable ones. An example: "One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernals." - Luke 6:01, The New Testament Became "On a day of Sabbath, Jesus and his disciples traversed a blackberry garden. A few of the disciples helped themselves to many of the ripened berries." - Luke 6:01, The Hallowed Text. : Some scriptures, however, appear to have been inserted to encourage behaviors that were neccessary for survival in the forest. "and so Jesus looked down upon the malformed thing as it fed on the flesh of the unlucky elf. And he said onto it 'Surley god intended no place for such filth.' and plunged his knife into it's soft skull. It let out a jibbery scream as it died. - Dugan 7:24 (Keep in mind that this scripture discribes a whore's mutated child. In the very next sentence, Jesus kills her too for not doing the deed herself when it was born!) : It is through this text that all laws, acts of daily life, and interacts with other beings are dictated. The Hallowed are extremly loyal to it and reject even the idea that theirs is an abberation of the true text. (but to be fair the King James Version is an abberation from original Hebrew text anyway. True story.) Weapons and Magic : Life in the forest has forced the Hallowed to improvise many of their weapons. After discovering the large diamond catche that their temple and city is now built upon, they've used the material for everything from building material, to work tools, to weaponry. Diamond bladed swords, axes, and diamond headed hammers are popular choices. Because of their diamond's unique psychokenetic properties, psions are welcomed individuals in the church. They also like to carve wands out of the rock, as these properties are also good for chaneling magic. Magic is rarely used by the Hallowed however, as most magics rely on faith in religions outside their own. Category:The Hallowed Category:The Factions Category:Religions